


bones

by rainphee



Category: Metal Gear
Genre: F/F, First Kiss, Nudity, Skinny Dipping, [enters meiryl tag] my city now, no sexual content tho lol, two gals bein pals kissin in a lake, yes this is based off the killers song
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-19
Updated: 2019-09-19
Packaged: 2020-10-24 07:34:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20702267
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rainphee/pseuds/rainphee
Summary: come and take a swim with me / don’t you wanna feel my skin / on your skin / it’s only naturalMeryl and Mei Ling go for a swim.





	bones

When Mei Ling wakes up, her wristwatch is beeping midnight, tiny flashing blue numbers in the gloom. The car stereo displays the same, crackling with the turned-down noises of a late-night talkshow. 

She sits up, rubs at her face where it’s been squished against the seat. Next to her, Meryl is staring out at the highway ahead, peppered with nothing but infrequent streetlamps. The window is open, and Mei Ling can see the way the fluorescents frame her face, how the wind catches her hair, and not for the first time, she has to swallow down a surge of affection.

“Wakey wakey,” she smiles, looking over at her when Mei Ling stretches and grunts. “You finally with us?”

“How long was I out...?” She stifles a yawn with her elbow. She sure doesn’t  _ feel  _ rested. Her whole right side aches.

“Not too long. An hour or so.” Flicking her turn signal, Meryl pulls the van into an exit ramp, heading for the smaller roads below that cut through a tiny, quiet swathe of suburbia. “I’m glad. I didn‘t want you to miss our arrival.”

“...this isn’t Ottawa, Meryl.”

She laughs. “Nope.”

“Where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise. Just trust me.”

The houses become more and more sparse as they drive on through the night, streetlights fading away for more trees, roads getting skinnier and turning into gravel. Mei Ling leans out the open window and takes deep gulps of the night air, the freshness stinging at her throat as she blinks away the sleepiness.

It takes them a long time to get there. The silence is broken only by the radio, which had long ago faded from bored host chats to the nighttime roster of preloaded music. Despite the lack of chatter, Mei Ling doesn’t feel awkward; she looks over at Meryl and there’s something bright and excitable in her eyes, always hopping with energy. Her freckles look like constellations on her pale skin.

The van skids a little bit on the gravel as the trees part and Mei Ling sees the moon shining off Meryl’s surprise: a decently-sized lake, tucked away in the forest. She switches off the ignition with a flick of her wrist and the sounds of a purring engine and staticy radio are replaced with gently lapping waves against the pebble shore.

“This was your present?” she says, closing the door behind her. The sound of late-season cicadas echo over the gap in the foliage. “It’s pretty...”

She turns to see Meryl with her shirt over her face. Going very red, she watches as she pops it off, red hair tangled and skin exposed and bright in the moonlight. Her bra is already off- they agreed several months back that they were pointless at best and uncomfortable at worst- and Mei Ling’s eyes trace over her curves, over the freckles on her chest and the faint scars from a life of roughousing on her arms and shoulders.

“You uh, don’t have to if you don’t want to,” Meryl says, when she catches Mei Ling’s gaze. “It’s just that skinny dipping season is almost over, so I thought it might be nice. It’s okay if you stay in the van or on the dock though.”

They had kissed last week. That was all Mei Ling could remember, as Meryl stripped down and she could see every inch of her under the eyes of the moon.

It had been a spur of the moment thing. They had been on the road for days, and it was their first pit stop at a tucked-away diner. They had shared a slice of pumpkin pie and had a mug of thick black coffee each, and when they left, she had grabbed Meryl’s tank top and pulled her down and kissed her under the neon sign’s light. She remembered the moment when she kissed back before they both pulled away- intense chapped lips against hers, tasting of whipped cream and coffee beans.

She had apologized, briefly. And then they didn’t talk about it.

She wants to talk about it.

Meryl wades into the water until the darkness swallows her hips. Mei Ling watches as she shivers, and splashes around with her hands, playful and sprinkling droplets on her skin. When she turns around, the moon catches all the water on her skin and she shines, unbreakable and perfect.

Mei Ling pulls her t-shirt off.

The water is bitingly cold around her legs as she follows Meryl deeper into the lake, stumbling against sand and pointed rocks between her toes. When the water is just under her breasts she trips, and Meryl catches her against her muscled chest; Mei Ling feels their bodies press together and despite the cold, something sparks warm deep inside.

“You’re not very good at swimming,” Meryl teases, holding her arms strongly. 

“I never learned.”

“Geez. You shoulda told me, or I’d have never dragged you out here.”

“No, it’s okay.” She leans forward, rests her head on Meryl’s shoulder. “I like it.”

They’re silent for a moment. The waves lap softly against their skin, the sharp cold in Mei Ling’s bones fading out through her toes. 

“I liked it when you kissed me,” Meryl whispers, her voice scratchy. “Sorry about this roundabout way of saying it.”

Mei Ling breathes out, in, once, twice, and looks up at her. She is shining and vulnerable, and she can see the stars reflected in her eyes.

“Do you...” she mumbles. “Do you want to do it again?”

Meryl smiles. “Yeah.”

And when Meryl cradles her jaw and their lips touch again, Mei Ling forgets about the cold entirely.

**Author's Note:**

> you physically cant stop me from making niche f/f content.
> 
> if you want to talk obscure lesbian ships come bother me @rainphee on [tumblr](https://rainphee.tumblr.com/) and [twitter](https://twitter.com/rainphee)!


End file.
